Layla Caffrey
by bexy8
Summary: Neal meets his 15 year old daughter and finds out she is a lot like him. She also finds love in the Big Apple with a teenage thief. READ! T cause I'm paranoid
1. Chapter 1

_**Ok so this is my first fan fiction and I'm nervous. Constructive criticism is appreciated. I do not own White Collar. I only own my OC Layla and Kylie. **_

_**At June's House**_

As Neal slept in his bed, he swore he could feel someone watching him. As he threw off the covers, he felt vaguely surprised at the feel of a cold surface under his feet. He crept toward the kitchen area of his very contemporary apartment; he saw a flash outside his glass double door leading out to the patio. Neal quickly ran to the door and flung it open, looking around for the person who ran past. But Neal saw nothing. As he went back into bed he looked at the clock on his bedside table. 2:30 A.M., _"Dang, it's early." _He thought to himself.

Neal swore he slept for 5 minutes when his alarm went off 4 ½ hours later at 7 o'clock. "Neal…Neal! Wake UP!" Mozzie said/yelled, right in Neal's ear. "Oww…Moz that hurts!" Neal said rubbing his ear. "Well how else was I supposed to wake you up?" Mozzie said as he sat down at the kitchen table sipping his tea. "Umm…how about shaking me." Neal said sitting down across from Mozzie rubbing his ear. "Well I could," Mozzie said thinking about it for a bit, "But that's not as fun for me." He finally said with a smirk on his face. "Yeah, but a lot less painful for me." Neal said rubbing his ear again. "Well the suit called and he wants to see you in 15 minutes." Mozzie said taking another sip of his tea. "Ok," Neal replied simply as he walked to the bathroom to get ready for his meeting with Peter.

_**At FBI Headquarters, White Collar Crime Unit**_

When Neal stepped out of the elevator and into the office, all eyes were on him. When he passed Diana's desk she grabbed his arm, "Neal," she said staring at him right in his piercing blue eyes, "Peter needs to see you…" "I know I'm just going to grab a coff-"Neal said pointing at the small kitchen but Diana cut him off. "Now." She said in a serious voice staring into his eyes again. "Or go straight to Peter's office." Neal said smirking as he jogged up the stairs. Diana rolled her eyes at Neal's self confident persona.

As Neal made his way to Peter's office, he saw a girl sitting on the couch talking to Peter. She looked to be about 15 or so. "Are you sure?" Peter asked. "Positive." The girl said right before Neal walked in. "Neal," Peter said turning his attention away from the girl and onto Neal. "There is someone here to um…talk to you privately." Peter said shifting his eyes back to the girl. "So I'll leave you alone to talk." Peter said as he slid past Neal and out the door of his office.

Neal looked at Peter confused right as Peter walked past him. Peter gave him no hint to who the girl was by his facial expression. "So," Neal said as he walked over to the edge of Peter's desk and sat on the corner of it, eyeing the girl with dark brown hair that were in soft curls and that stopped midway down her back, she had bangs covering her eyes so he could not see what color they were. "Who are you and why did you want to speak to me?" Neal asked with genuine interest. The girl shifted her position on the couch as if she were uncomfortable. "My name is Layla," she swallowed hard, "Layla Caffrey, and I'm your daughter." She said looking up at him, with her bangs now off to one side, he could now see her piercing blue eyes that looked so much like his own.

_**Two Days Prior to Meeting**_

Layla laid awake in her chair on the plane. _**"Why can I not get to sleep!"**_ She asked herself. Maybe it was because of the letter she received two days ago. It started out like any other day at her Georgia boarding school, Brighten Dale.

_**Two Days Before**_

When Layla's alarm clock went off at 6:45 A.M., she rolled out of bed and went straight to the bathroom. As she came out freshly showered fifteen minutes later, her roommate Kylie Hayes was just getting out of her bed across the small room. "Morning Sunshine," Layla said in a sing-songy voice, "How's it going this fine morning?" "Why are you so chipper this morning?" Kylie said with a yawn. "No reason." Layla said with a small smile. "Would it have something to do with your grandparents visiting tomorrow." Kylie said on her way over to the bathroom from which Layla just left. "Yeah, it does Kaylie." Layla said pulling on her green pea coat over her plaid green and blue vest with a plain gray shirt under it and a pair of light wash ripped skinny jeans and blue converse. Then she walked out the door heading for her criminology class.

When Layla got back that night after her classes, criminology, crime scene analysis, theory of the criminally insane mind, and art history classes, she went to empty her mailbox. When Layla opened her mailbox she saw a thick looking legal envelope. As she pulled it out she saw it was from a woman called Kate Morneau. When she opened the envelope it said it was sent to her because this woman, Kate Morneau, had died. As Layla started reading the letter she wondered who this Kate Morneau woman was. Layla's eyes widened at one part of the letter that said…_**Layla**_ _**Harrison: Mother: Jane Harrison, Father: Neal Caffrey. **_Layla never really wondered who her father was, she always had her mother, Jane, and after her mother died she went to live with her grandparents for a couple of months, and then they sent her off to Brighten Dale boarding school. Now that she knew who her father was she knew in her gut she had to go meet him. She knew she had to go now. _**"I'll leave in the morning." **_Layla thought to herself.

_**2 hours Before Meeting**_

As Layla thought about the events of yesterday and the letter, her eyes started to tear up. _**"Why are you crying, he never wanted you, why do you even care, your mom actually loved you." **_Layla said to herself lying back in her seat. As she closed her eyes she gently lulled off to sleep. 2 ½ hours later she was jolted awake by the plane hitting the ground in New York were Layla's father Neal Caffrey lived. _**"I'm in the same city as my father whom I have never met." **_Layla thought to herself, _**"This is crazy,"**_ she thought, _**"Why did I even come?" **_Layla started to doubt what she was doing as she stepped off the plane.

_**Back to the Present**_

"You're my what?" Neal asked shocked at what this young girl, Layla, had just said. "I'm your daughter." she repeated again. "What, there is no way I have a daughter." Neal said staring at the girl in front of him, who did look very similar to him. "Look, my mom is…" she swallowed, "was Jane Harrison, did you know her, here is a picture of her." Layla said handing Neal a photo of her mother. "Oh, Jane, I knew her when I was 19." Neal said looking down. "Here is my birth certificate too." Layla said handing Neal a piece of paper that had her name, Neal's name, and Jane's name on it. "Neal Caffrey, that's you, right?" Layla asked pointing to Neal's name on the paper." Yeah," Neal said simply still staring at the paper Layla had handed him. "I also got this letter yesterday from a woman named Kate Morneau…" Neal stiffened at the mention of Kate's name. "It was sent to me after she died from her lawyer, explaining that you are my father." Layla said staring at her feet. "And I thought now that I know who my father is…why not go meet him, I knew in my gut I just had to come out and meet you…my father." Layla continued now looking up at Neal.

"No…No… No this is way too irrational." Neal said his eyes glazed over and his brows knitted together in thought. **"Did I really have a daughter?" "Did I really leave her and Jane on their own?" "Man! I am a horrible father!" **Neal thought as Layla continued to look at him while sweeping her dark brown bangs to the side. "I'm so sorry." Neal said staring back at the girl…his girl. Now it was her turn to look confused as she pondered the statement her father had just made. "For what?" Layla replied looking into his blue eyes with her own blue ones. "For not being there for you. If I knew I had gotten Jane pregnant I wouldn't have left. I just wanted to protect her. Layla I'm not a good guy. I mean I wasn't a good guy." Neal replied with his eyes now looking at the carpet of Peter Burke's office. "I know." Layla said with a smirk. "You know?" Neal asked with a glimmer of confusion in his clear blue eyes. "What? You thought I didn't do homework on my father." Layla said still smirking. **"Man she has got a conman smirk." **Neal thought as he stared back at his beautiful smirking daughter. "And just so you know I'm not that much of a good girl either." Layla said as she winked at him with that conman smirk still on her face.

**_End of chapter 1! Review and tell me if I should continue!_**

**_Thanks! :)_**

**_-bexy8_**


	2. Chapter 2

_**Ok thanks so much guys for reviewing it means a lot since this is my first story! Thanks filmgrl13 and stargatesg1973 for the tips. And now here it is chapter 2! ENJOY!**_

_**At FBI Headquarters, White Collar Crime Unit**_

_**Outside Peter Burke's Office**_

"What do you think they're talking about?" Peter asked sipping his coffee that Jones just handed to him and Diana. "I don't know boss, who is that girl." Jones asked. Diana and Peter stared at Jones shocked. "What?" Jones asked them. "That's Neal's daughter, Layla Caffrey." Diana said taking a sip of her coffee too. "Wow…" Jones said staring at the girl through the window. "Now that you mention it she does look like Caffrey." Jones added. "I know!" Diana exclaimed. "I know she looks like him but that doesn't mean she is his daughter." Jones added in. "Yeah, do you trust her Peter?" Diana asked. "I don't know. Let's keep and eye on her." Peter said starting to walk up to his office. "Oh," Peter added while turning around, "and if she is telling the truth and she is Neal's daughter still keep an eye on her because she is Neal's daughter." Diana and Jones nodded their understanding while Peter continued walking toward his office.

_**Inside Peter Burke's Office (Before Peter Arrives)**_

"So where do you go to school" Neal asked Layla from his spot on the corner of Peter's desk. "I go to a boarding school in Georgia, its called Brighten Dale." Layla answered. "Oh what are your favorite classes that you're taking?" Neal asked genuinely interested in his daughter's life. "Well I'm taking criminology, crime scene analysis, theory of the criminally insane, and art history. My favorite is criminology though." Layla answered feeling more comfortable with talking to her dad. Neal chuckled lightly at that and put on his famous conman smirk. "You know," he said, "I'm interested in all of those too." Layla laughed and mimicked her father's smirk. "I bet you are."

_**Inside Peter Burke's Office (Peter Arriving)**_

"So I really would like to get to know you Layla, you should call your grandparents and let them know you are safe and ask them if you can stay for the weekend." Neal said. "Yeah I would really like that." Layla said as she smiled and her eyes shined. Just then Peter walked in. "Neal we have a case can I talk to you privately." Peter asked turning to Layla. "Yeah sure, I'll go call my grandparents is there a phone I can use my cell is dead." Layla asked getting up from her spot on the couch. "Yeah, go to Jones's desk," Peter said pointing out Jones," he will let you use his phone." "Ok thank you." Layla said as she walked out of Peter's office.

_**In the Board Room**_

"So the case we are dealing with are burglaries." Peter said to the entire board room. "So how is the FBI involved with plain old burglaries, isn't that the NYPD's job?" Neal asked confused. "Well not when the burglars are stealing marked bills and buying priceless art work then reselling them." Peter explained." "Oh, now that sounds more like FBI work now." Neal stated.

_**At Jones's Desk (a couple minutes before the case meeting)**_

Layla walked down the stairs to the main floor of the FBI Headquarters. Layla walked over to the desk that Peter pointed out. "Are you Jones?" Layla asked the African American man. He turned around and said" Yes. Hey, your Neal Caffrey's daughter right?" Jones asked fully turned around now. "Yeah, um I need to call my grandparents and tell them that I'm safe. And my cell is dead so can I use your phone?" Layla asked a little uncomfortable. She wasn't good with talking to people she didn't know. "Yeah sure." Jones said smiling at her and grabbing the phone. "Jones, Diana, Harding, Larson, and Gray in the board room now," Peter spoke from the top of the stairs, "we have a new case." Jones handed the phone to Layla and left in the direction of the board room. Layla typed in the number of her grandparent's home number. "Hello?" Her grandmother answered in a scared voice. **"Why does she sound scared?" **Layla thought. **"Oh caller ID it must say FBI! DUH!" **"Hi grandma it's me Layla." "Layla why are you calling from the FBI?" "Because I'm in New York with my dad and he is a consultant for the FBI and I was calling you tell you that I'm alright and was wondering if I could stay here for the weekend." Layla asked worried what her grandma would say. "Ok, I think that's a good idea you should get to know your father. But call us later. We love you sweetie!" "Ok, thanks love you too grandma. Tell grandpa I love him too, ok." Layla said. "Ok love you." "Bye." Layla said as she hung up and walked toward the board room.

**Ok that's chapter 2! Sorry it's a little short I'm just kinda trying to get the story going! REVIEW PLEASE!**

**-bexy8 **


	3. Author's Note

**Author's Note:**

**Sorry I haven't updated in forever I have writers block. Anyway I'm going to Virginia for a week for break and maybe that will clear my head and get me writing. Expect at least 2 chapters in 2 weeks. Thanks for the support!**

**-bexy8 **


	4. Chapter 3

_**Sorry, sorry, 100 million billion times sorry! I'm a horrible person cause I totally forgot about my story So I'm gonna try and get the fire back for this story. Wish me luck! I'm also going to try different points of view so I can stop using names every sentence like "Layla said and Neal said" so wish me luck on this new style. Anyways on with the story!**_

_**P.S. This whole chapter is about Layla reflecting on some things and growing nervous about spending time with Neal, sorry if this maybe a little boring but it has to be done!**_

_**FBI Headquarters (Layla POV)**_

** "What if I screw this up? What if Neal finds out that when he gets to know me, he doesn't like the real me?" **All these insecurities and different scenarios were going through my mind as I cautiously walked toward the conference room. As I approached the door, Neal shook his head and motioned towards Peter's office. I nodded at him taking the hint that I should wait in there until the meeting is finished. **"I wonder what the meeting is about? Wait, it's the FBI it's probably some type of high profile crime." **I lightly laughed to myself for not thinking of that in the first place. I walked through the glass doors of Peter's office and sat down on the small couch in the corner. My eyes scanned the walls of the very Peter Burke style office trying to find something to focus on besides the growing insecurities that were waging war in my mind. Suddenly I noticed pictures on Peter's desk, I glanced toward the glass doors to see if anyone was watching me. **"All clear**." I thought to myself as I reached for the photos. One photo had Peter hugging a beautiful dark haired, blue eyed woman around the waist. I assumed that was his wife Elizabeth, I remember hearing something vaguely about Peter being married in Neal's FBI consultant file. The other was of a dog, **"is that a golden retriever, how Peter." **A smile slowly spread across my face as I imagined Peter playing with his dog. Soon the smile was replaced by a slight frown as I realized that I would never have a dog or normal family to come home to. I wonder if this would be different if mom was alive? **"Would I have even come to find Neal if mom were alive?"** I pondered this for moment as I set the photos back in their places on the desk. **"Why would I have needed to come, mom was all I have ever needed, do I even need Neal now?" **I slowly walked to the glass doors and peeked out to look at the conference room. Neal's focus was on Peter as was Diana's and Jones's. **"Maybe I'm just causing unnecessary stress being here," **I thought as I noticed Neal's slightly stressed expression,** "I should just go." **I concluded as I spun back around and quickly grabbed and adjusted my bag securely across my body. I took one last look at the conference room and Neal as I swiftly made my way to the glass doors at the front of the headquarters. I pressed the button to call the elevator and patiently waited for it to make its way up to me. "Goodbye dad." I whispered to myself as I stepped into the elevator and pressed the ground floor.

_**Well didn't see that coming now did ya! I thought I might add a little twist at the end to make this chapter a little more interesting. Tell me what you think cause reviews make me want to write more hint hint ;)**_

_**-bexy8 **_


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